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Celebrating Women's History Month milestones

By: Becky Kover

The Columbus Dispatch - March 06, 2012 04:19 PM

PETE SOUZA / CHICAGO TRIBUNE

Supreme Court Justice, Sandra Day O'Connor

TIMEFORKIDS.COM

Travel through our timeline and meet some amazing women who helped shape our country’s history.
March is Women’s History Month, and the theme this year is “Women’s Education — Women’s
Empowerment.” Learn more about Women’s History Month at www.nwhp.org.

* 1851: Sojourner Truth delivers her famous “Ain’t I a Woman” speech at a women’s
rights convention in Akron, Ohio. The former slave spent 40 years of her life preaching a message
of equality for all people.

* 1869: Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony organize the National Woman
Suffrage Association to fight for women’s rights, especially the right to vote. More than a century
later, Anthony was honored when the U.S. Mint created a coin using her image.

* 1920: After 72 years of struggle, women win the right to vote with the 19th
Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Shortly afterwards, the League of Women Voters is created to
push for more reforms.

* 1942: About 350,000 women serve in the armed forces during World War II. Many
more provide support services. About 100,000 of those women serve in the U.S. Navy as WAVES (Women
Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service).

* 1968: Shirley Chisholm becomes the first African-American woman elected to
Congress. Four years later, the New Yorker became the first black person to run for President in
the Democratic primaries.

* 1972: Congress passes the Equal Rights Amendment, 49 years after it was first
introduced! The amendment calls for equal rights for both men and women. However, a constitutional
amendment requires both Congress’ and the states’ approval, and the measure later failed when too
few states approved it.

* 1972: A federal law known as Title IX ensures equal funding for both male and
female sports in schools. As a result, women and girls have more opportunities to participate in
sports. In fact, many female Olympic athletes say Title IX gave them the opportunity to attend
college, participate in sports, and receive athletic scholarships.

* 1981: Sandra Day O’Connor becomes the first woman appointed to the U.S. Supreme
Court. At the time, just six percent of all federal judges were women.

* 1983: Sally Ride becomes America’s first female astronaut when she spends six
days in space. Today, about 25 percent of NASA’s astronauts are women.

* 1996: Appointed by President Bill Clinton on Dec. 5, 1996, Madeleine Albright
became the first woman United States secretary of state. As the president’s top adviser on foreign
policy, Albright was the most powerful woman in the president’s Cabinet. As the highest-ranking
member of the Cabinet, the secretary of state is the third-highest official of the executive branch
and fourth in line to succeed the presidency.

* 2000: Hillary Clinton becomes the first first lady of the United States to be
elected to public office. She joins Congress as a U.S. senator from New York.

* 2004: President George W. Bush appointed the second woman and first female
African-American secretary of state, Condoleezza Rice. Rice was President Bush’s national security
advisor during his first term, making her the first woman to serve in that position.

* 2009: Hillary Clinton became the third woman appointed to secretary of state on
Jan. 21, 2009. Appointed in by President Barack Obama, Clinton is the first first lady to be
appointed to the position.